Sisi orders swift relocation of tanneries to Robeky city

CAIRO - 10 July 2017: President Abdel Fattah El Sisi met on Monday with Prime Minister Sherif Ismail in the presence of Trade and Industry Minister Tareq Qabeel and Transport Minister Hisham Arafat.

Qabeel reviewed during the meeting a report on the implementation of a project to replace the tanneries from Cairo to Robeky city, said presidential spokesman Alaa Yousef.

The minister said the first phase of the project has been accomplished and new tanneries will be allocated for manufacturers who want to relocate to the new city, said Yousef.

Concrete bases for installing the relevant machines are being set up at the new tanneries, said the trade minister, adding that the basic infrastructure was constructed in around 40 percent of the second phase.

President Sisi gave directives to continue the process of relocating the tanneries from Old Cairo to the new city, stressing that the state was committed to complete the process of re-location by the end of August.

The president said the new city is expected to be a model for specialized industrial cities.

Sisi ordered the transport ministry to extend the railway from Belbis city to Robeky city through the 10th of Ramadan City to ease the production in the new industrial city.

Arafat, for his part, reviewed a report on current efforts to develop the railways in Egypt including a project to electrify railway signals at a total cost of EGP12 billion and a recently-signed deal with General Electric of the US to provide Egypt with 100 locomotives.

The minister said the work is underway to increase the rail freight transport to around 6 million tons in 2017-2018, with a monthly increase of 500,000 tons.

A project to upgrade the first line of Metro at a total cost of 26 billion EGP and another project to develop the second line were also reviewed by the minister during the meeting.